MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2002 Feb 22;51(7):144-7.
Dental caries (i.e., tooth decay) is a transmissible, multifactor disease that affects 50% of children aged 5-9 years, 67% of adolescents aged 12-17 years, and 94% of adults aged > or = 18 years in the United States. During the second half of the 20th century, a major decline in the prevalence and severity of dental caries resulted from the identification of fluoride as an effective method of preventing caries. Fluoridation of the public water supply is the most equitable, cost-effective, and cost-saving method of delivering fluoride to the community. In the United States during 2000, approximately 162 million persons (65.8% of the population served by public water systems) received optimally fluoridated water compared with 144 million (62.1%) in 1992. This report presents state-specific data on the status of water fluoridation in the United States and describes a new surveillance system designed to routinely produce state and national data to monitor fluoridation in the public water supply. The results of this report indicate slow progress toward increasing access to optimally fluoridated water for persons using public water systems. Data from the new surveillance system can heighten public awareness of this effective caries prevention measure and can be used to identify areas where additional health promotion efforts are needed.
龋齿（即蛀牙）是一种可传播的多因素疾病，在美国，50%的5至9岁儿童、67%的12至17岁青少年以及94%的18岁及以上成年人受其影响。在20世纪下半叶，由于发现氟化物是预防龋齿的有效方法，龋齿的患病率和严重程度大幅下降。公共供水系统的氟化处理是向社区提供氟化物最公平、最具成本效益且最节省成本的方法。2000年，在美国，约有1.62亿人（占公共供水系统服务人口的65.8%）饮用了氟含量适宜的水，而1992年这一数字为1.44亿人（占62.1%）。本报告提供了美国各州水氟化处理状况的具体数据，并介绍了一个新的监测系统，该系统旨在定期生成州和国家层面的数据，以监测公共供水系统中的氟化处理情况。本报告的结果表明，在为使用公共供水系统的人群增加获取氟含量适宜的水的机会方面进展缓慢。新监测系统的数据能够提高公众对这种有效的龋齿预防措施的认识，并可用于确定需要进一步开展健康促进工作的地区。
